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Upside Down John
"Upside Down John" is the first half of the tenth episode of the second season of Wayside. Synopsis John worries that he'll encounter the same mistakes as his ancestors by being upside down, so the students in Mrs. Jewls's class try to get him on his feet. Plot This episode begins with Louis delivering an IQ test to Mr. Kidswatter. Mr. Kidswatter prepares to take the test, getting out as many supplies and lucky trinkets as possible. However, when he collapses after the first question, he decides to observe the science fair in Mrs. Jewls's class to get ideas. In the classroom, John is showing off his vinegar volcano. However, since it's built upside down, the lava simply falls to the floor instead of dripping down the sides. John is upset that it didn't work, and while the rest of the class reassures that he did fine, John is less certain, as he recalls the hardships his ancestors have endured for centuries. He claims that it keeps getting worse, as money spills out of his pockets (which Myron tries to steal) and starts crying, though Mr. Kidswatter thinks his "volcano ketchup dispenser" is brilliant, and runs back to his office. The other students decide they'll help John get on his feet, and run outside to the schoolyard. Dana tries pushing him over, but he ends up reverting quickly, flinging Dana across the playground. Dana asks if anyone else has ideas, and Maurecia gets the idea to ride down a ramp on her skates and try tackling him. He briefly stands on his feet, but loses his balance, causing him to flip back over and causing money to spill out of his pockets. Myron steals the money using a magnet, which gives Todd an idea. Meanwhile in the principal's office, Mr. Kidswatter starts standing on his head, realizing all his best ideas were in his feet. He gets to work on the IQ test with a long dramatic montage of him getting answers, or rather, the answer to the first question, before moving on to question two. In the auditorium, John is seen wearing a metal helmet, and Todd explains that it's so the giant magnet will be able to lift him onto his feet. Miss Mush rolls in a cart of heavy, stale mushroom muffins, which are placed on John's feet to weigh them down. Todd activates the magnet, and while it works, John ends up being overwhelmed by the blood rushing to his feet, and aside from that, it proves too powerful, pulling in every metallic object it can reach. Dana deactivates the giant magnet, causing all the metallic objects in the school to crash into a pile, which is claimed by Myron. John is upset that it didn't work at all, and Maurecia and Dana aren't sure if there's anything left that could work, but Todd still has ideas to try out. On the thirtieth story, John is able to stand on his feet thanks to Miss Mush's daily special being used as an adhesive. It works perfectly, but when the bell for recess is dismissed, John is stuck to the floor, and unable to get out of the way, he's trampled by all the oncoming students. John tells the other students to forget about it, since there's nothing they can do to help him, and he leaves. While the other students are sorry for John, Myron, rich from his lost money, states that they might be looking at things the wrong way. This gives Todd an idea, as he questions if they are all looking at things the wrong way. When Mrs. Jewls returns to the classroom, she sees Todd, Maurecia, Myron, and Dana standing upside down, and they explain that they're trying to help out John. Mrs. Jewls asks what's wrong with him, and they bring up the problems his ancestors faced, but Mrs. Jewls states that that's not what she heard. Mrs. Jewls explains that by being upside down, his ancestors were able to invent useful inventions such as fire, underwear, and most importantly, the exploding test tube, and that being upside down isn't a bad thing at all. Later the day, John presents his new science project, which utilizes the giant magnet from earlier. He explains that be reversing the polarity, he is able to get magnets to move around whatever objects he feels, or people, if dressed right. He demonstrates with Myron, who he flings around the classroom with his magnet. John thanks his upside down friends for helping him out, and leaves the room. In the principal's office, Kidswatter finishes his test, and has Louis grade it with the computer. Louis sees that he got 99%, and Mr. Kidswatter runs away excited, deciding he's too smart for Wayside. Louis, however, then notices that the computer is upside down, and that he actually got 66%, which he feels sounded more right. He silently laughs, and the episode ends. Characters *Mr. Kidswatter *Louis *John *Mrs. Jewls *Eric Bacon *Eric Ovens *Eric Fry *Todd *Myron *Yodana *Leslie *Jenny *Elizabeth *Bebe *Rondi *Joe *Maurecia *Stephen *Shari *John's family (final appearance) **John's caveman ancestor (debut) **John's Roman ancestor (debut) **John's great grandfather (debut) *Romans (debut) *Miss Mush *Incidental 050 *Incidental 003 *Incidental 008 *Incidental 005 (palette-swapped) *Cow Transcript Read a transcript for "Upside Down John" here. Trivia *This episode's plot is a weird inversion of John's chapter in Sideways Stories from Wayside School. In "John," John is trying to learn how to stand on his head, while in "Upside Down John," John is trying to learn how to stand on his feet. *For a single frame, a chicken can be seen on the super IQ computer as it calculates the results. *Contrary to the end of this episode, IQ tests are not scored with percentages. They are scored with a number of points, with 100 being statistically average, and anything above or below it being perceived as more or less intelligent. Gallery See a gallery for "Upside Down John" here. Category:Season 2 episodes Category:Episodes